Naalu Ascension
by MartyrFan
Summary: A fanfic based on the board game of Twilight Imperium. Empires rise and fall. First the Mahact Kings, then the Lazax Imperium, and now the Human Federation. How did the individuals that brought the Federation to power also lay the groundwork for the rise of the next ruling race? My first multi-chapter story.
1. Prologue

Prologue

Located within the inner ring of the Milky Way Galaxy is the white star Mallac. There are six planets in orbit around it, and two of them are within the star's Goldilocks Zone. They are Maaluuk and Druaa, two planets that couldn't be more different. Maaluuk consists of bog and mist-plains, while Druaa is considered one of the most beautiful planets in the galaxy with its crystal cities, violet mountains, and glowing forests. The Mallac star system is ruled by the telepathic, serpentine Naalu. Humans that see these sentients can't help but think of the mythic merpeople of ancient Earth. Because of their telepathy, they are left to their own devices.

What most don't know is that there is a very interesting genetic anomaly within the Naalu race. Every once in a while, a Naalu will be hatched that has no telepathy, but instead wields the power to manipulate objects without touching them: telekinesis. These "mutes," as they are called, are ostracized by the normal members of their species, even by their own families. They are treated as third-rate citizens, even lower than the enslaved Miashan of Maaluk. They are the pariahs of their society; they can't have jobs, they can't leave the system, they can't even have a mate.

It has been so for thousands of years now. But that's all about to change.


	2. Escape from Druaa

Escape from Druaa

Underneath the city of Eershin, two hooded figures met in a decaying warehouse. They were both mutes, as evidenced by the obscene-looking symbols inked into the skin of their right cheeks. As soon as they saw one another, they hid behind an old iron-processor. When they had made sure no one was around, they turned and embraced each other, hard.

"Haarshin, I thought for sure that you had been caught," whispered the smaller of the two in Naaluan as they parted. By the pitch of the voice, it was obvious that it was a she.

"It's alright, N'leen. They won't know they've been robbed until morning. I levitated the box out of the safe just as that guard J'lan was activating the security shield and sensors. He didn't even see it go out the window." The owner of the deeper voice held up a large metal container that resembled a briefcase. He fiddled with the locks on it and it popped wide open. The poor light was reflected off the contents in a rainbow of colors.

N'leen eyes widened. "How much nathelene is in there?" she gasped.

"Enough," grinned Haarshin, "to bribe a certain greedy jout of a Yssaril captain to get us beyond the Collective's influence, as well as to get a start somewhere else."

"What if someone read your mind after you did it?" whispered N'leen, staring everywhere.

"Don't worry. You taught me how to direct my thoughts to avoid a passing scan, remember?" answered Haarshin. He shut the case and hid it under his cloak. "Just stay calm and channel your mind into other paths. It'll be nice not having our minds read on a daily basis."

N'leen took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Right. Let's just hope Captain Rwein doesn't betray us as soon as we set tail upon his vessel."

"The only thing stronger than his greed is his sense of honor. That's pretty common among the Yssaril."

"Yes, the honor of an assassin," she muttered.

"It's a risk we have to take. Besides, it's better than what we already got." As he was saying this he began to lower himself by coiling his tail on the ground. He also got a small box out of a pocket in his cloak.

N'leen was peering behind the corner of the processor. "Yes, I suppose you're right." She turned around. "The ship is the _Dagger_, isn't it? Haarshin, what are you…?" she trailed off, staring.

Haarshin cleared his throat. "N'leen, we've been friends for a long time. When I was alone, you were there to comfort me and teach me how to survive. I know that I'm flawed and that you deserve more than me but…" He opened the box, revealing a Naalu engagement bracelet. "Will you be my mate?"

His answer came in the form of a rib-breaking hug. "I will, I will!" she squealed. She allowed him to put the bracelet on her right arm. She studied it. "How did you manage?"

"A sliver of nathelene and some makeup to cover up the mark, and it was easy as kalyone. That's why I was late. We can perform the rituals when we've gotten our own home, far away from any Collective-ruled planets."

She hugged him again. "The ship leaves at midnight, right?"

"Yes. See you then, my love." They parted, slowly and longingly.

That night at one of the many landing pads spread around the perimeter of the city, a Yssaril trading vessel stood as the cargo was loaded. The captain alternated between yelling and criticizing the supercargo and looking for someone. Just when the last of the cargo had been loaded, he spotted two figures furtively gliding towards his ship. Looking around to make sure no one important was watching, he strode over to the pair.

"Haarshin?" he inquired in the Yssaril tongue. The taller of the two nodded. "Have you got the payment?" Haarshin opened something beneath his cloak and five bars of nathelene floated from out beneath his cloak, and hovered in front of the short being.

Captain Rwein blinked his large eyes and then grabbed the bars out of midair and shoved them into his pocket. "I'll check them on the ship later. Get onboard _quietly_ and one of my men will lead you to your quarters. If this isn't real, or the Collective comes after my ship, I won't hesitate to get rid of you both. Understand?"

The two mutes nodded and, keeping close to the shadows, entered the _Dagger_. Inside, the atmosphere was set to imitate that of the Fianni Swamps of Retillion. It was humid with a stinking mist. N'leen wrinkled her nose and then jumped when a Yssaril spacer suddenly appeared out of the mist. "Follow me," he growled.

The walls of the ship were wet from the mist and looked slimy. Bizarre plants were spaced at even intervals along the corridors. The spacer led them to a door and opened it for them. "I'll see if I can scrounge something from the mess hall for you," he told them as they entered the Spartan cell. It was empty with only a single porthole in the opposite wall. He closed the door before they could thank him.

"Well, he hasn't told anyone about us, nor is he planning too," observed Haarshin.

"How can you tell? You can't read minds, remember."

"No, but I can read him. If he was planning on turning us in, he wouldn't place us in an airlock. He wouldn't think of it. No, if the authorities come after him, this is the best way to get rid of us."

N'leen swallowed and studied the new-found door opposite the first one. "What if he decides to get rid of us for the rest of the nathelene?"

"Then he'll have a hard time getting it when it's floating out in space. I believe that there are three types of sentients in the world, N'leen. There are those who go out of their way to be cruel and hateful. Our own people, for instance. There are people that are decent and kind. They're rare though. And then there are people like Rwein who are out to get money. Particularly easy money. Do you agree, my little, green spy?" He addressed this last to a dark corner of the cell.

A part of the wall near that corner shifted and suddenly turned into a glaring Yssaril wearing camo-clothes. He was a little on the young side and he was missing a piece of his left ear. "How did you know I was there?" He demanded. "You're a mute, not a mind-reader."

"I scanned the room for loose objects when we came in. Your body was the only thing in the room."

"Oh." He looked both embarrassed and peeved. "I'll just be leaving then. Don't mention this to anyone, will you? I haven't been caught before and the others will just love it if a mute spotted me."

"We won't," stated N'leen, regarding the Yssaril sharply. "By the way, just where is this ship headed? We were a bit rushed and didn't catch that."

"We're delivering supplies to both the Naalu and Yssaril embassies on Mecatol Rex. Luckily for you, the spaceport isn't close to them and you shouldn't be spotted by their security. I'm Jhuin, by the way."

"N'leen, and this is my intended mate, Haarshin." She didn't break her gaze on the green being.

"Good to meet you then." He opened the door and started to step out. "Oh, and I do agree with your observations, Haarshin," He added before closing the door.

Right then, the _Dagger _rumbled and shifted. N'leen and Haarshin struggled to keep their balance as the ship ascended into the atmosphere and into space. Haarshin got up and looked out the porthole at the rapidly shrinking Druaa. The Mallac system soon gave way to the streaks of light and darkness caused by the speeds only a mass drive could achieve.

He turned away from the porthole and coiled himself down next to N'leen on the floor. "After Mecatol Rex, we'll find a world that's out of the way. Two Naalu living away from their own kind is sure to draw attention." He put an arm around her and squeezed.

N'leen smiled and fingered the bracelet on her arm. "Finally, we're free," she murmured as sleep claimed them both.


	3. A New Home and New Life

A New Home and New Life

A year later, N'leen lay coiled around a nest she had made from blankets and sheets. Nestled within it were three eggs. Each one was about the size of an ostrich egg, and a golden brown. Unlike bird eggs, which have a hard shell made out of minerals like calcium, these were made of a leathery membrane. This was normal for any serpentine creature, sentient and animal, considering that snakes didn't have an egg tooth when they hatched. N'leen had spent the last month looking after the eggs; the five before that had been spent carrying them. Ever since she had laid them, she had been like this, a guardian angel watching over her charges. She only ate when Haarshin brought food to her in their bedroom, which was often. The only people she allowed in the room these days were Haarshin and her female friends in the town. Naalu mothers were very protective of their eggs, especially just before they were going to hatch.

As she gently caressed and cooed over her brood, N'leen thought back to when she and Haarshin had arrived in Mecatol City, the only inhabitable place on the planet of Mecatol Rex. No sooner had they disembarked from the _Dagger_ than they had nearly run into the Naalu delegation for the Galactic Council. Had the delegates not been wearing the telepathy-blocking headsets that were mandatory for Naalu visitors, they would've been caught for sure. As it was, she and Haarshin had been arrested in a marketplace when someone had noticed two Naalu gliding through the place with no headsets at all. Haarshin would've used his telekinesis if the city's security force weren't armed with stunners. The only thing that had saved them, albeit accidentally, had been the chance meeting with a non-mute Naalu at the security center. Their unintentional savior had made a ruckus over two mutes being outside the Mallac system, and when the security personnel learned what a mute was, they were released. Nothing came up about the nathelene since they hadn't found it underneath Haarshin's cloak.

After that incident, she and Haarshin left the planet on a 2nd-rate passenger ship within half an hour to avoid the Naalu embassy security force. No sooner had their restraints come off than the Naalu at the center shot off to alert the Collective of their presence. For the next few weeks they would travel to different planets looking for a home, avoiding their own kind like a pestilence. Eventually, they came to the Federation-controlled world of Gral. The population was mostly Human with an insectoid Sardakk here or a feline Hacan there. The initial prejudice they were met with vanished when their condition was made known, with few exceptions. These few hateful hardly dampened the joy that came with acceptance. It was heavenly; imagine, being accepted because they couldn't read minds! It was so strange, and yet so welcome.

Human society took some getting used to. Most of their buildings and transports weren't made for creatures with long tails. Additionally, clothing had been a major pain at first. Naalu didn't feel the need to wear textiles on their bodies. N'leen couldn't help being envious of Haarshin. It was acceptable for him to slither around "naked," while she needed to wear a shirt in public. Even now N'leen didn't care for clothes shopping. She preferred utilitarian shirts and coats; her human friends were really into fashion.

Using the last of the nathelene (traveling across the galaxy tended to use up money and precious metals), they had been able to purchase both a modest home in Gral's main settlement and a marriage license. The license was so that the state would recognize their union. When they had gotten home from signing it they had the traditional Naalu rituals. This involved an incredibly intricate and beautiful dance while they sang their vows to each other. Their new friends had acted as witnesses for the event. That night was one of the happiest of their lives.

Both of them had been able to acquire jobs at the local vehicle factory. Their ability to move heavy equipment and machinery, with assistance of course, had earned them both very nice salaries. The satisfaction that came from being paid for their labor was great; the fact that it was because of their condition made them almost lightheaded. N'leen snickered as she remembered what Haarshin had bought with his first paycheck to celebrate: a bottle of Zohlian whiskey. Haarshin had taken a single shot, and had promptly hit the floor. After that they kept the bottle on a high shelf in the pantry as a trophy of sorts.

When she had found out she was pregnant she had been ecstatic. On Druaa, she had heard horror stories about mute females who had gotten pregnant disappearing and then reappearing without any children or any memories at all. These "cleansed," as the Collective called them, were like children thrust into an adult world that hated them for reasons they couldn't understand. They usually died alone with no one. The Collective made it illegal for two or more mutes to gather together. The secret friendships she'd had on Druaa were the result of careful and highly secret meetings in dark, lonely places. Her children would never experience that though. Here, they would never know that prejudice, that irrational hatred because they were different. Here, a lack of telepathy was celebrated, and their telekinesis wasn't strong enough to be considered a threat. Of course, there were the few anti-Naalu bigots, but they didn't bother Haarshin and N'leen due to the friends the couple had made. Her babies would have a far happier childhood than she or Haarshin did.

That evening Haarshin walked in the door and promptly collapsed onto the couch in the living room. He would get started on dinner in a moment. Work had gotten a bit harder without N'leen to help him with the heavier stuff. He was just glad that he had his job and that he would be a father soon. The idea of fatherhood both excited and frightened him. He hardly remembered his own father. He had been turned out on the street when it became clear that he wasn't ever going to communicate telepathically. It usually took Naalu children a few years to get full control over their telepathic capabilities. He just hoped that he would be a good father to his own kids.

"Haarshin, come in here," called N'leen from the master bedroom. In a flash, Haarshin was off the couch and shooting over to the door as fast as he could. The instant the door opened to admit him he shot inside.

"I'm here, what's wrong?"

She jumped and shushed him. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong. Just listen."

Haarshin stared at his mate and then took a couple of deep breaths. The nerves were getting to him these days. The eggs…the eggs!

He leaned down towards them and listened hard. There it was again. He hadn't imagined it. The eggs were emitting very small squeaks. They were finally hatching. He put his arm around N'leen and drew her close. "You did it, love."

She smiled. "We did it."

What the two watching the eggs didn't consider was that the scene was a bit of a paradox. Two Naalu, alone in a room with a nest full of squeaking eggs. That bit of the scene wasn't abnormal. It was a common enough sight on Collective-controlled planets. This, however, wasn't a usual Naalu hatching. These eggs carried the offspring of two Naalu mutes, the first in recorded history to reach this point of development. Scientists and doctors of all the races should be swarming the room, taking notes, adjusting instruments, making sure the eggs were safe. The only times a doctor had been involved had been when N'leen had gone in for a pregnancy scan and when she had laid the eggs. No. The hatching proceeded the same as almost all the Naalu hatchings before it. Haarshin and N'leen had no idea that this was one of the most important moments in the history of Naalu biology.

Twelve hours later, three new Naalu hatchlings looked up at their parents. The first to hatch was a strong healthy male. He was named Benjamin after Haarshin's first and best Human friend. The second was an equally healthy and loud female that they named Li after Benjamin's wife, one of N'leen's friends. The last one to hatch was hours after the others came out. She was a small thing, the runt of the litter. In her parents' eyes she was just as beautiful as her siblings. Her name was "Fayla," the Naalu word for happiness. And happy they were. This was their ultimate triumph against the Naalu Collective, against the Queen. Their society had, for all intents and purposes, declared them to be unfit to be members of the proud Naalu race. Superior to all other sentients in their unity and tranquility among themselves. Destined to become the successors of the Lazax as the rulers of the galaxy. Able to crush any threat when it was nothing more than a thought. To the disillusioned mutes, it was all rodent manure.

Haarshin yawned as he went to the phone to call his boss and tell him he wouldn't be in today. After he and N'leen got rest and food, he was going to call the doctor to have him check up on the hatchlings. He also had to go down to the local house of law and have his kids registered as citizens of the Federation. Most individuals wanted their children to be citizens of whatever government their race had. Not so with Haarshin. He wanted none of that for his offspring. As he went about his day little did he guess that he and N'leen had decided the fate of the Naalu race, and the galaxy.


	4. Childhood and Discovery

Childhood and Discovery

Parenthood is exhausting. To Haarshin and N'leen, this phrase was an understatement. These days, N'leen stayed at home to take care of the kids while Haarshin continued his work at the factory. Three kids at once can be a handful, and getting only half of what you once made is frustrating. Yes, it was hard being a one-income household, but worth it. Haarshin's favorite moment of the day was when he slid through the front door to find N'leen singing softly to the sometimes napping hatchlings. This reality they now lived was an impossible dream for the mutes back on Druaa and Maaluuk. It was more than worth it.

As the hatchling grew physically and mentally, their telekinetic abilities became apparent. This was something they excelled at. They were naturals at manipulating objects with their minds. However, when they were 5 years old, odd things started occurring. The kids started coming just as they were about to be called and they seemed to know what was for dinner before they were told. They also seemed to know what people thought of them, whether it was good or bad. After a few months of this, N'leen decided to get to the bottom of it. She gathered the kids together after lunch one day in their bedroom and sat down with them. She had a sneaking suspicion how they were doing it and it filled her heart with fear.

"Benny, Li, Fayla, I need to ask you something. Something very important."

"What is it, Momma?" piped up Li. She tended to be the most inquisitive of the three.

"She wants to know how we know stuff before we're supposed to," interrupted Fayla. She picked up a stuffed toy off the floor and played with it absently.

N'leen couldn't help but pale a bit. Memories of Naalu picking through her mind to belittle her shot through her head. "How did you know that Fayla?"

"You've been thinking it since breakfast," Fayla replied. She looked up at her mother and saw her expression. "Mommy, what's wrong?"

"Nothing dear." N'leen fought those unpleasant memories down and smiled down at her daughter. "You know what I'm thinking? Do you know what other people are thinking?"

"Yes," answered Li. "Mrs. Gonzalez thinks we're too loud and rowdy. What does rowdy mean?"

"It means, um, very active," answered N'leen. This confirmed it. Her children were both telepathic and telekinetic. She had never seen this coming, never in a thousand years.

"You don't want us doing that. Because of what the," he puckered his face as he tried to pronounce the word. "Na…Naal…"

"Naalu." She took a deep breath. "I don't know how much you know, but here it is. Your father and I, we're what the Naalu call mutes. We can't read minds but we can do this." She levitated a story book off a shelf and into her hand. "They didn't like that and they treated us very badly. They gave us these marks." She ran a hand over the symbol on her cheek and purposely brought up the milder of the bad memories in her mind, as well as when she and Haarshin had fled the planet.

Her children's eyes widened. "You ran away, because they were mean to you and Daddy," Fayla confirmed.

"Yes. Here, we're accepted because we couldn't know what other people were thinking. That's why most people don't like Naalus," she explained. "Benny, Li, Fayla, you need to be careful. If they knew what you can do, they won't accept us anymore. We need to set a few rules down."

Her children were generally well-behaved, but like all sentient offspring, they needed rules. She could tell they weren't thrilled. "Just a few now. First, don't read other people minds. Second, don't use your abilities to cheat at school when you start going there. Third, don't read my mind and your father's unless we give you permission. You can read each other's minds as much as you want." She sighed. "I don't want to ruin your fun, but most people don't like having their minds read. It's an invasion of their privacy. That means secret things that don't hurt anyone that they don't want anyone else to know. Understand?"

"Yes, Mommy," they all chorused.

"Good," smiled N'leen. "Remember now, this is our little secret." As they slithered outside to play, N'leen sighed. Now she just had to tell Haarshin her discovery. She just hoped he'd take it well.

Thankfully, he did. He had his own talk with the kids. They obeyed the rules their parents had set down for their telepathic abilities, for the most part. They avoided reading their parent's minds, but they did keep tabs on the thoughts of the neighborhood bullies. When they started school, they didn't read the minds of their classmates but they did consult each other regularly for help. That was as far as it went.

Time passed and N'leen laid another clutch of eggs when her first brood was about 7 years old. Three eggs again, only this time it was two males and a female. They too developed telepathic abilities in addition to their telekinesis. Other than that, the family's life was pretty normal (or as normal as you can get with two telekinetic sentients with telepathic offspring). Benjamin's and Li's kids become fast friends with Benny, Li, and Fayla. They had other friends of course, but they were, and always would be, fast friends.

By their tenth birthday, things were going well for Benny's, Li's, and Fayla's family. They got along well with their siblings, they had good friends in the neighborhood, and they were all doing well in school, especially Fayla. Haarshin's hard work at the plant paid off and he was now a supervisor, though he did continue to help with heavy lifting. N'leen surprised them all after their birthday supper; she was pregnant again.

In that moment, everything seemed right in the world. Haarshin and N'leen had escaped from the prejudice of their own people and created a life for themselves and their family. It was far more than either of them had ever expected to have. What they didn't know, was that malevolent forces were now regarding their little piece of paradise, and plotting against them. Darkness was coming to the modest house on Gral, and it would decide the outcome of looming events.


End file.
